Sunday, January 11, 2015

Pumpkin braided loaf with cream cheese filling: semi fail


This was an experiment.  I wanted to use up leftover pumpkin puree, leftover cream cheese, and an abundance of wild yeast starter.  I really liked the Cranberry Pumpkin Rolls I made a couple months ago, so decided to start with that recipe.  I altered it somewhat to add whole wheat flour and my starter, and used the technique from the Braided Lemon Bread to incorporate the cream cheese.

I wasn't completely happy with the results, but they weren't bad.  The biggest issue was I had too much dough for one loaf; I should have reduced the recipe by half.  Because the loaf was so large, it didn't cook properly and was a little dry on the edges.  I also didn't adjust the recipe for flavor due to the whole wheat, which made it slightly bitter and overwhelmed the spices (even though they were already doubled from the original.)  I played with the braiding technique (I don't like the mummy-wrap appearance of most false braids) and was happy with the result, but I still need practice.

Some of the bitterness might have been from too much starter, but I can't be sure.  I used about a cup, which is a lot, but my starter is fairly mild.  I would like to be able to omit commercial yeast entirely, but for this loaf I included 1 teaspoon.  (My starter had been semi-dormant in the refrigerator.  I fed it only once a few hours before mixing the dough, but it bubbled nicely.)  I allowed the dough to rise in a cold room overnight the first time; it took about 10 hours.  The second rise after shaping went much more quickly because the room was warm.  I think I could get away with no commercial yeast as long as I leave plenty of time for the starter to work.

So below is not what I did, but the changes I need to make for next time.  It still might not be perfect, but it will be closer.  This is half of the original King Arthur Flour pumpkin roll recipe with the following changes:  spices and salt are increased (even more than in my rolls, to account for the whole wheat); whole wheat flour, orange juice, zest, and pecans added.  I did not account for the starter.

Dough
2¼+ cups flour (mix of all-purpose and white whole wheat)
3/8 cup+ (3 ounces) orange juice
1½ teaspoon ground cinnamon (increased from 1)
3/4 teaspoon ground ginger (increased from 1/4)
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves 
2-3 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar, light or dark
1 teaspoons salt (increased from 3/4)
1½ teaspoon instant yeast (or use starter)
3/8 cup (3 ounces) canned pumpkin or squash
1 large egg
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
zest of one orange
1/2 cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped

Filling
1/2 cup unsweetened, dried cranberries, reconstituted 
1 cup cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 egg, remainder reserved for wash

Mix the flour and orange juice (and starter, if using) and allow to sit for 20-25 minutes for the moisture to be absorbed.  Add the rest of the ingredients and knead until you have a soft, fairly smooth dough, adding extra water or flour if needed. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, cover the bowl, and allow the dough to rise for 1½ hours, until it's almost double in bulk.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly greased surface and gently deflate it.  Roll out the dough into an approximate 10" x 15" rectangle. (Roll on parchment paper to make moving the bread to the baking sheet easier.) Lightly press two lines down the dough lengthwise, to divide it into 3 equal sections. Roll the outer sections out another inch or so.  Spread the cream cheese filling down the center section.

Braiding technique  The center third should be slightly thicker than sides; make sure top is wide and squared off, not tapered.  Cut strips about 1" wide, slanting them upwards.  Be sure to make cuts for strips from high on the top sides to start; those need to be folded across without pulling the top into a narrower point than the rest of the loaf, so allow plenty of dough.  The very top bit can be folded down, preferably under the filling, but build up a rim so filling doesn't fall out.  Strips should be gently rolled and lengthened into ropes.  When braiding, aim strips for about two places down on opposite side -- they need to be long.  Proceed with a lattice effect, making sure not to let strips lay on filling before they are finally secured.  Each strip should do one under and one over, which will allow the end to be tucked inside.  The filling will be exposed between the strips.  Tuck the final ends under the loaf and cut off any excess dough.  Set aside, covered lightly, to rise for 1 hour, or until it looks puffy.

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Mix the remaining 1/2 egg with a little water and brush over the loaf. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until lightly browned.  The center should read about 190⁰F.  Remove from the oven and cool for about 30 minutes before serving.  




Based on:   recipes for Cranberry Pumpkin Rolls and Braided Lemon Bread via King Arthur Flour.

Friday, January 2, 2015

January ABC Challenge: Chocolate Peanut-Butter-Chip Banana Muffins


The Avid Bakers Challenge group is heading in a new direction this year with recipes from Christina Marsigliese's blog Scientifically Sweet.  Here we go...

Many years ago, I bought a bag of peanut butter chips (I think it was Reese's brand) and was so disappointed.  They tasted terribly artificial.  Since then I've seen a lot of recipes I wanted to try that called for peanut butter chips, but figured there was no point in making them because the lousy chips would ruin it.  Then a couple weeks ago I saw peanut butter chips at Trader Joe's.  I checked the ingredients:  nothing artificial!  But I still passed on buying them because I didn't have a use.  Enter ABC challenge number 1 for 2015!  Chocolate.  Bananas.  Muffins.  What better place to introduce peanut butter?

Despite my anticipation of chocolaty peanut-buttery banana melty goodness, I think I've had enough decadence over the past two months and decided to cut the recipe down by one quarter.  I threw in a little better nutrition by using half whole wheat flour as well, and I increased the salt.

Yield:  3 standard muffins

Here's what I used:

¾ cup 3 tablespoons ripe banana (about 2 ½ medium banana)
1/3 cup 4 teaspoons sour cream
1 1/4 (14g) large egg 
½ cup 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
¼ cup 1 tablespoon canola oil
1 1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1¼ cup 5 tablespoons whole wheat and all-purpose flour blend
1/3 cup 4 teaspoons unsweetened Dutch-processed cocoa powder
 ¼ + 1/16 teaspoon baking powder
½ 1/8  teaspoon baking soda
¼ 1/8 teaspoon salt
½ 1/8  teaspoon ground cinnamon
½ cup 2 tablespoons semi-sweet chocolate peanut butter chips

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line a standard 12-cup muffin pan with 3 liners and set aside.

In your mixing bowl, mash together the banana and sour cream with the whisk, then whisk until fairly smooth. Whisk in egg, sugar, canola oil and vanilla extract until well blended. Sift together flour, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon; add to the wet ingredients along with the peanut butter chips and fold gently until just combined. Do not over-mix.  Divide batter evenly among muffin cups. Bake until the muffin tops spring back when touched gently and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean despite any melted chips, 20-22 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes in the pan before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.


Conclusion:  The quantity of chips in this recipe is perfect if using chocolate because they're enhancing an existing flavor.  But as peanut butter is a new flavor, these could have used more chips, about half again as much.  Otherwise, the muffins were delicious, and I snarfed down all three in short order.  You'll have to pardon the weak photos as there was no opportunity for do-overs.

Original recipe:  Double Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins via Scientifically Sweet